Adjustable shelving



Dec. 22, 1936. H, J. F|NER ET AL I 2,064,899

ADJUSTABLE sHELvING Filed Feb. 7, '1935 /0\ /11 8E' 4 8 f y 9 3 rm 8 l0 8 Y /'b :70N

:I0 3 9 165 9 lo 8 )6b Patented Dec. 22, QS

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE ADJUSTABLE SHELVING Application February 7, 1935, Serial N0. 5,415

lin Great Britain February 10, 1934 Claims.

This invention has reference to improvements relating to adjustable shelving and has for its object to provide an improved construction of ad justable shelving which admits of an infinite ad- 5 justment of the shelves and which results in the automatic locking of the shelves to their supporting means when the shelves are brought into the positions they are required to occupy in use.

The invention consists of an improved adjustable shelving wherein a shelf or shelf supporting means is attached to an intermediate portion of a member which is slidably and tiltablymounted within uprights and which is provided adjacent to its ends with anti-friction means for facilitating the movement of the shelf into the adjusted position said member having associated with an intermediate portion thereof means which eX- erts a binding action on the sides of the uprights when the shelf or shelf supporting means is brought into the position it is required to occupy when in use and which permits a free traverse of the said member when the shelf or shelf supporting means is tilted out of the last mentioned position.

The invention also resides in the provision of means for facilitating the sliding movement of the aforesaid members within the slideways.

The invention further resides in the provision of means for increasing the security of the locking of the slidable members within a slideway.

The invention still further resides in the details ticular reference to the accompanying sheet of drawings which illustrate the invention in its application to adjustable library shelving.

In the drawing:-

Figure 1 is a perspective View partly in section of a portion of a multi-tier double sided stack of library shelving.

Figure 2 is a detail view showing the locking member to which -a shelf carrying means is attached in the freed position and Figure 3 is a detail view showing the locking member illustrated in Figure 2 in the locked position.

The end members of the shelves 8 have secured thereto bars 9 the rear portions whereof are cranked and riveted to the central portion of two-armed locking members I0. These locking members I0 are slidably mounted within uprights II of a channel shape in cross section the end portions of the free-ended limbs whereof are bent inwardly as indicated in Figure 1. Adjacent to each end the two-armed members I0 have rearwardly projecting pins IUb on each of which is rotatably mounted a roller I2, said rollers I2 being disposed on opposite sides of the Vertical axes of the members IEl and .projecting beyond the respective adjacent edges of the said members. At each end the locking members I0 are also provided with rounded noses Id, said rounded noses Illd also being disposed on opposite sides of the vertical axes ofthe members IIJ. l

The shelf supporting bar 9 is secured to the locking member I0 by a pair of rivets I5 which serve also as pivots for a pair of plates Ielfib the inner edges ild whereof are inclined and cooperate with one another in the `manner of Wedges. These plates are dimensioned so that when the inclined edges |6016d register throughout their length with one another the distance between the vertical edges of the plates is slightly greater than the width of the channel in the upright H. l

It will be appreciated that when a shelf 8 is lifted for adjustment by reason of the shelf supporting bars 9 being hinged to each of a pair of plates Iseli;b the said plates move away from one another so that the distance between the vertical flanges thereof becomes less than the width of the channel in the upright I I thereby freeing the members ID and enabling the shelves 8 to be traversed freey in the channels in the uprights II.

When the shelves 8 are at the required height they are brought to the horizontal position whereupon the wedge-shaped plates IEiaISb move towards one another and the inclined faces IBCId co-act to thrust the vertical edges of the said plates IfiIbb into rrn binding contact with the adjacent faces of the side flanges of the upright II.

It will be appreciated that the greater the load on a shelf 8 the greater is the binding force that is exerted.

Adjustable shelving constructed as hereinbefore described permits of an infinite adjustment of the shelving and ensures an easy movement of the shelving when adjustment is being effected together with a secure locking of the shelving in an adjusted position. The innite adjustment of the shelving is particularly valuable when applied to library shelving as the shelves may be set at just the required height to take the particular books it is desired to place on the shelves.

What we claim is:-

1. Adjustable shelving comprising in combination slideways, members connected with each adjustable shelf which are slidably and tiltably mounted within said slideways, anti-friction means carried by said members Which-come into contact with the adjacent sides of the slideways for facilitating the movement of a shelf into an adjusted position and means located in an intermediate portion of the sai-d members which exerts a binding action on the sides of the uprights when a shelf is brought into the position it is desired to occupy when in use and which permits a free traverse of the said members when a shelf` is tilted out of the position it occupies prior to a change of position.

2. Adjustable shelving having in combination slideways, two-armed locking members connected With each adjustable shelf, said locking members being slidably and tiltably mounted within their respective slideways, anti-friction means located adjacent to the ends of the locking members which come into contact with the adjacent sides of the slideway for facilitating the movement of a shelf into an adjusted position and a pair of oppositely disposed members carried by the intermediate section of the tiltable members and Which exert a binding action on the sides of the slideway when the shelf supporting means is brought into the position it is required to occupy when in use and which permit a free traverse of the slidable and tiltable members when the shelf supporting means is tilted out of the position it occupies prior to a change of position.

' 3. Adjustable shelving comprising in combination slideways, two-armed members connected with each shelf said members being slidably and tiltably mounted within the slideways, anti-friction means carried by the said two-armed members adjacent to the ends thereof and adapted to contact with the sides of the slideways for facilitating the movement of a shelf to an adjusted position and a pair of wedges pivotally connected to the intermediate portion of the locking member and arranged so that the inclined faces co-operate to force the plates into binding engagement with the sides of the slideway when a shelf is brought into the position it is required to occupy when in use and to permit of free movement of the two-armed members When a shelf is tilted out of the position it occupies before an adjustment is made.

4. Adjustable shelving comprising in combination slideways, two-armed locking members connected with each shelf, anti-friction means provide-d adjacent to the ends of each locking member, a shelf supporting means fixed to an intermediate portion of the said locking members by a two-point connection and a wedge pivotally mounted on each of said connections the inclined faces of the wedges co-operating to exert a bind ing action on the sides of the slideway when a shelf is brought into the position it is required to occupy when in use and to permit of free traverse of a shelf when the shelf is tilted out of the position it occupies prior to adjustment being made.

5. Adjustable shelving, according to claim 1, wherein the anti-friction means is in the form of rollers diagonally disposed relatively to the ends of the locking member.

HENRY JAMES FINER. JOHN BICKERS. 

